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Radio Change & Coding


Pilchard
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The Radio/Audio unit in my 04 plate Avensis T3 D4D recently died without warning. Fuse is fine so I presume the unit, a W53900 (86120 05070) is faulty.

Considering there are several on eBay for between £25 & £60, I presume it's probably not worth trying to diagnose & fix it.........(is it?), so I'm seriously considering getting an eBay one.

Anyone, like me, driving an 04 plate Avensis can be judged as pretty hard-up &, although my skills are no match to 21st century technology, I like to at least give it a go before I open my wallet to a garage.

- My main question is about coding.......... Will it be Plug & Play or will I need a code? If it needs a code, then how & where will I get one & what do I do with it when I have it?

- The other question is, are there any advantages to buying a unit that still has attached to it the bottom panel with the three heater knobs?

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Thanks Alan 333, short & sweet.

How about that question re the bottom piece with the three heater knobs?

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apart from having a spare I cannot see any other advantage

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How about that question re the bottom piece with the three heater knobs?

Hmmm, I avoided answering that bit hoping someone with better info would come along. I had a couple of bulbs out on my heater knobs and removed the complete radio/heater controls to change them. The two should have come apart but I couldn't do it, IIRC I got them loose but couldn't separate them. I did manage to change the bulbs tho I remember it was awkward. Other than that I see no reason you'd need new heater controls, you can "simply" swap yours over.

(It was an 05 plate T25 Avensis at the time, not my current car)

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That's a good & honest answer Alan.

I only asked because a couple of radio units offered on eBay had the bottom bit still attached. I figured there had to be some logical reason why. I guess the breakers had the same problem as you........ &, I figure I'd probably have the same problem too.

Anyway, I've fortunately already ordered up one with the heater controls. I guessed that as they're the same as mine, it might save me some grief. Good price too....... £25 inc P&P, then eBay gave me a £5 discount. In a few days time I'll be crow-barring off jagged & distorted bits of Japanese plastic.

Before I go......... another question.......... the little switch on the RHS of the steering column with the wiggly lines................ it's supposed to be some kind of pre-heater according to the useless owner manual. It lights up.......... but that's it. Am I missing a trick here? It'll be my 3rd winter now with this car & it takes a good 6 - 10 miles to get to full temp. I had a 1.9 tdi VW that got to full temp in winter by the end of the 300 metre road. 6 - 10 miles is daft. My local (non Toyota) garage don't have a clue re the wiggly line switch/heater thingy & can only suggest changing the stat. Any words of wisdom Alan?

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In a few days time I'll be crow-barring off jagged & distorted bits of Japanese plastic.

another question.......... the little switch on the RHS of the steering column with the wiggly lines................ it's supposed to be some kind of pre-heater according to the useless owner manual

To remove the radio... Pull off the long thin piece of trim above the radio - the bit which covers the rear window demister and cup holder etc. Start from the far passenger end and pull gently forward towards you. It's held by a few push-in clips. Also remove the gear lever surround - the complete section up to the bottom of the heater controls. It's also held by push in clips. IIRC I removed the ashtray and pulled from the ashtray aperture. If it seems stuck then use something to pry the rearmost edge upwards - carefully. Then you'll need a 10mm socket on an extension to reach the 4 bolts holding the radio in.

The heater... Mine were both petrols so didn't have this button. I believe it's a cold morning heater as you suggest. The ones fitted to Merc Sprinters (and some other Mercs) were a diesel fed electrically controlled heater, and it heats the coolant circuit. Try following the coolant hoses and see if there's anything like a box with coolant hoses in and out, a small diesel pipe, some simple wiring, and an exhaust pipe coming out of it. On the Sprinter it was difficult to see the exhaust cos it went through the wheel arch (or through the chassis or something - can't quite remember).

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The switch is a "power heater" switch, I had one fitted to my 2003 model bought new, The owners handbook stated that there was a diesel heater (Eberspacher type) fitted behind the engine, the switch as yours lit up but no heat developed. I took the car back to the dealer for attention.

The dealers explanation was "the UK model does not have the diesel heater fitted and works by reversing the air conditioning and to work the A/C has to be on, the temperature control set to high and the outside temperature has to be below minus 5c. even with all this still no heat.

I wrote to Toyota and they said that, "The heater was not fitted to the UK model and they had forgotten to remove the switch from the spec, sorry for any inconveniance."

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Thanks for the radio removal help Alan. I wasn't really going to attack the dash with a crowbar & axe, but you can sometimes feel like doing just that when you don't know the technique & it's not going your way.

Revband......... when I first read that the switch was some sort of heater........ I don't think the book made it clear if it was to warm the cabin, engine or both............ I thought, now way could there be a Eberspacher under the lid, so assumed some other clever piece of technology beyond my comprehension. In any event, as it didn't work, the car had a host of more pressing problems to deal with & I ignored it.

So, someone in Toyota forgot to remove the switch. I wonder if he went home, the evening after they gave him the hard word, to a bit of impromtu Seppuku.

Is a 6-10 mile warm-up normal for this car? It can't be.

I have read though that some owners experience similar probs. If it IS normal, cant see how Toyota could have allowed this! Maybe it was the same guy that screwed up with the switch.

This car don't inspire love. It handles like a wheelbarrow & there's no feelgood factor. But, now I've put right all the neglect it sustained prior to my ownership, it just chugs on & on & on on just a few whiffs of deisel. I once did a long 50mph stretch on the M1 with the dash readout slowly counting up to 82 mpg!!!!! Pulling a small trailer!!!! Wow!!!!

What's the bike? Reminds me of an old BSA Bandit, but a bit fiddled with.

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John your engine 1cd-ftv does take a while to warm up, a extra layer of clothing and pair of socks on cold mornings does the trick.

you could try changing the thermostat but only use genuine, this may improve it slightly.

Here is a video for your cd player removal if needed.

John a bit off topic- how did your 1.9 compare to the Toyota?

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Hi John

Make your own mind up regarding the heater, I find it hard to believe either the dealer or Toyota's excuses.

The user handbook supplied with mine showed the heater situated just below the back of the engine on the nearside it even had a picture showing it, needless to say the heater wasn't there I looked carefully from every angle.

The bike?, your not too far out, it is a 1946 BSA B32 Competition which I bought as a wreck from the back of a large timber storage shed where it had languished for many years, I restored it to the condition in the picture over a couple of years,

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Thanks for the YouTube video. I had actually seen it, & a few others........... but thanks anyway for being helpful.

If the radio/CD/unit I've bought comes early enough, I'll be having a bash but............ as it's booked in on Thursday this week for an A/C re-gas & a stat change (a Toyota one), I might be leaving the radio change to them.

I hope the stat change significantly improves the warm-up time but if not.......... I can't understand a quality motor producer (or even a rubbish one) thinking it's OK to have an engine running cold for so long after start-up, never mind it's owner getting frost-bite.

Re the 1.9 VW........... it was a T4 van. I do like vans. This one was an 800 special &, for a van, it was fast. Cruising German Autobahns at 85 -90 for hours on end. Those 1.9tdi's are rated as possibly the best engine VW ever made &, with frequent oil changes, last for ever. Pretty unsophisticated (no EGR or DMF) so less to go wrong. The only reason I sold it was because of the stupid Boris Johnson London regs re emissions & vehicle age. My 1.9 ran without the faintest puff of smoke, even on overrun, while the 2-3 year-old Mercedese Sprinters that are endemic in London leave a dense smokescreen behind them. Getting rid of it was galling & heartbreaking. Anyway...... it's gone. It gave me 35-40 mpg on a run: the Avensis does 50 pottering about local A roads & country lanes & 65mpg if I behave myself on the motorway.

The Bike....... oh those balmy days of my youth. I had, amongst others, a Tiger Cub Sport that had been custom modified for trials. The high comp piston & high lift cams had it crackling & howling like a demon. Real fun. I gave it to a pal once I had a family. Bad move.

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Well the W53900 radio CD cassette unit with heater control panel arrived today & Murphy's Law was in operation. It had been sent out in a ball of bubble wrap & it must have been kicked around a bit as the heater control panel has sustained an inch long crack to the black plastic in the bottom left corner. I could install it as it is & pretend I can't see the crack (although I'll always KNOW it's there), or I could remove the heater panel & use my original. I can't get the !Removed! thing off though. I can't separate the heater control unit from the audio unit. The side mounting bracket plates are now off & all that's holding the two panels together is 3 tabs you can just about see through the 2mm gap between the panels. Have tried wiggling, gently levering, sliding a pallet knife in, to maybe spring open what may be toothed tabs,....... nothing........ nada.

Any ideas guys?............ before I reach for the crowbar & axe.

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Have sussed it! Whenever a problem seems unsolvable, it's best to go off & do something else....... mundane is best......... sweep the floor....... do the washing-up.......... the brain seems to find solutions when left to just tick over.

Gently but firmly push the heater control panel to the left & it slides free of the audio unit. The three tabs are bayonet tabs.

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